This invention relates generally to the field of electrical outlets and/or junction devices that facilitate the interconnection of male and female type connectors for connecting electrical power, communication or other services. More specifically, this invention relates to an internal safety device adapted to fit inside a junction device or the socket body of an electric outlet.
Referring to FIGS. 1, and 1A, the conventional electrical outlet 15 generally comprises a switch plate 1, a socket 3, a combined fixing metal plate and grounding member 5, a housing 7 and a pair of conducting members 9. At a minimum, an electrical outlet must contain a socket 3 and at least one conductive member 9.
Efforts have been made since the initial development of electrical power for the home and industry, to provide safe utilization of electrical power without endangering the users. While the nominal 110 volts provided at most household electrical outlets is generally not fatal when encountered by an adult in good condition, it is nonetheless dangerous, and can be fatal. Furthermore, some countries and industries require 220 volts which increases the risk of fatal electric shocks. Therefore, it has become customary to construct many of the components of electrical systems and devices that a person is likely to encounter, of electrically non-conductive materials (i.e., plastic).
Nonetheless, it is still possible to receive an electric shock through intentional or inadvertent contact with the electrically active contacts within the receptacle itself. This is recognized as a significant hazard in households and businesses with toddlers and small children. This hazard has led to the development of various devices for locking electrical plugs to an outlet to preclude a child from disengaging the plug and having access to the outlet. Furthermore, various receptacle covers or guards have been developed in the past for covering unused receptacles.
Still, the conventional electrical receptacle provides little shielding for the receptacle contacts, which are generally recessed only about one-eighth of an inch from the face of the receptacle. Considering that the contact prongs of the typical 110 volt electrical appliance are about five-eighths of an inch long, the two electrical prongs of a conventional electrical appliance plug may be conducting electricity from an outlet receptacle with as little as one-eighth of an inch of each prong inserted into the receptacle. Alternatively, about one-half inch of each of the prongs may be exposed during insertion and removal of an electrical plug into or from an outlet, and still be conducting electricity to the electrical appliance connected to the plug. This poses a significant hazard to a person manipulating the plug, as oftentimes the prongs provide a tight fit into a receptacle, and many plugs are difficult to grip at other than the extreme base, where one""s fingers may contact the prongs.
Another problem encountered with standard electrical outlets is that children frequently try to insert foreign objects into the openings designed for an electrical plug. There is an obvious danger involved in any such attempted improper use of an electrical outlet by a child. Any improper touching of an inappropriate object inserted into an outlet can lead to the potential of electrical shock.
Protecting individuals from such potential electrical dangers is not a simple or easy task. The exposed opening of an electrical outlet makes the electrical power accessible to small children inserting objects into the outlet. Moreover as long as prongs are exposed a touch hazard exists. Unfortunately, for children the temptation and hazard always exists.
In an attempt to alleviate this problem, certain devices have been conceived to prevent children from playing with such electrical plugs in the electrical outlets. One such known protective device is an external safety plug consisting of a flat face member having two male prongs, the entire device generally being comprised of a non-conducting material. This device is designed to be inserted in an unused electrical outlet to discourage children from placing their fingers or foreign objects into the female outlet receptacles to avoid electrical shock. One limitation of such a device is that children may attempt and may easily pry the device out of an electrical socket thereby, negating its utility completely. Moreover, such insertible devices are not conceived or structured to protect against children prying out an already inserted plug or manipulating a plug to a partially unplugged but live position. As stated above, this latter aspect may be more of a potential danger then the problem of exposed outlets.
One safety device, described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,159,034 is an external safety cover for electrical outlets. This device is mainly to prevent children from pulling out electrical appliance plugs inserted in electrical outlets. The device comprises a door like cover being mounted in a hinged manner to an outlet plate. Unless the cover is locked a child looking to play with something can easily open it. Furthermore, this device does not prevent a child from inserting objects into the electrical outlet.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,788 describes a safety plate that is raised to provide a thickness of about one half inch from the underlying surface. This provides some safety protection as electrical outlets are conventionally installed flush with the surface. The safety plate includes one or more recesses corresponding to the one or more electrical receptacles of conventional electrical outlets, with the recesses being dimensioned and configured to provide a close fit about a conventional electrical plug inserted therein. Thus, by the time the contact prongs of the electrical plug have been withdrawn sufficiently from the receptacle for a person to touch the contact prongs, the prongs have been withdrawn sufficiently far from the receptacle so as to break contact with the receptacle contacts, thereby providing safety for a person using the invention. The reverse is also true, that when a plug is being inserted into the receptacle, the non-conductive base of the plug is immediately adjacent to the raised face of the present safety plate before the tips of the plug prongs may make contact with the electrical contacts within the outlet receptacle, thus precluding contact with a xe2x80x9chotxe2x80x9d prong of the plug by a user. The problem is that this invention requires use of an external safety plug or receptacle guard to prevent electrical shock from insertion of foreign objects. Such a receptacle guard can be easily removed by a child or inadvertently left off by an adult.
In U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,390 a lift and latch mechanism is described to create a flush/recessable junction device suitable for electrical outlets. However, the device does not provide protection from electrical shock without the use of external safety plugs that are easily removed or inadvertently left open by not inserting the external safety plug. Furthermore, there is the risk of electric shock if the plug is left partially inserted or withdrawn when the electrical outlet is flush with the junction device.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 6,183,264 describes a safety outlet receptacle with a corresponding plug that renders the outlet receptacle inactive and unable to transmit an electric current unless activated using the corresponding plug. The problem is that outlet will only work with a corresponding plug. Upgrading to specially manufactured corresponding plug is prohibitively expensive and prevents use of electrical devices without the attached corresponding plug.
None of the prior art, either singly or in combination, provides complete protection from electrical shock from inserted foreign objects or from a partially inserted or withdrawn plug from a safety outlet. There is a need for an electrical outlet safety device that prevents contact with the prongs of an electric plug due to partial insertion or removal of the plug into or from the outlet receptacle. Preferably, this device also provides protection without the use of external safety plugs or receptacle guards. In addition, there is a need to protect from insertion of foreign objects without the use of an external cover or box. Accordingly, there is a need for a new device for protection against all the foregoing dangers. While there are some devices conceived for this protection, the subject device is conceived as an improved device to protect against all such dangers, and the following embodiments of the invention are directed accordingly. The present invention satisfies this need.
The invention discloses an internal safety cover comprising a backend connected to at least one non-conducting prong. The backend is attachable to the inside of a socket body of an electrical outlet and the prong slidably fits inside a conductive member of said electrical outlet.
In an embodiment of the invention an electrical outlet is disclosed comprising a socket body, at least one conducting member, and an internal safety cover comprising a backend connected to at least one non-conducting prong wherein the backend of the safety cover is attached to the inside of the socket body by a compression device wherein the prong of the internal safety cover is slidably inside the conducting member. Furthermore, a method is disclosed using an electrical outlet and the internal safety cover to provide power while protecting against electrical shock.